200-RICR-20-20-3. Educator Evaluation Systems Standards (version Adoption, 05/11/2010 to 10/05/2018)

1 Educator Evaluation System Standards Preamble “Improving achievement requires recruitment of talented teachers and principals and stronger instructional practices, which in turn are driven by strategic talent management. Strategic talent management involves the practices of recruiting, developing, rewarding and retaining talented and demonstrably successful staff in school districts.” (Strategic Management of Human Capital, 2008) The Rhode Island Department of Education has reviewed recommendations from the Consortium for Policy Research in Education, which was launched with a focus on identifying strategies, policies, and practices to “attract, deploy, develop, incentivize, and retain top teaching, leadership and management talent,” and from the Rhode Island Urban Education Task Force, which has recommended the development and implementation of a statewide educator performance management system to improve educator quality. Anticipating the development of a performance management system that addresses the human capital cycle of acquisition through development, deployment, and advancement to accountability and exit, RIDE recognizes the need to provide leadership to its districts to assure the high quality educator evaluation that is at the core of the performance management system. Establishing parameters for evaluation systems that are at the basis for the development, deployment, and advancement stage of the model begins with the development of standards for district-based educator evaluation systems. This document presents a set of six standards that describe a high quality system. The standards identify expectations for all districts. RIDE will develop recommendations for how to support districts as they begin to implement these standards and processes that will lead to how local systems will be reviewed for compliance with the standards. It is important to remember that educator evaluation is only one element of an educator performance management system, but it represents a critical starting point. The six standards that comprise the Educator Evaluation System Standards were crafted to support the work of school districts to assure educator quality through a comprehensive district educator1 evaluation system that: establishes a common understanding of expectations for educator quality within the district; emphasizes the professional growth and continuous improvement of individual educators; creates an organizational approach to the collective professional growth and continuous improvement of groups of educators to support district goals; provides quality assurance for the performance of all district educators; assures fair, accurate, and consistent evaluations; and provides district educators a role in guiding the ongoing system development in response to systematic feedback and changing district needs. 1 The term educator is used to designate all district positions that require certification by the Rhode Island Department of Education. The terms of administrator, teacher, and support professional are used to designate three distinct roles that correspond to certification categories. For a full listing of certificates included in each category see http://www.ride.ri.gov/EducatorQuality/DOCS/Certification/list%20of%20certs%20issued.pdf 2 Standard 1: District evaluation systems establish a common vision of educator quality within a district through clearly communicated evaluation processes that build upon professional standards, emphasize professional practice, impact on student learning, demonstration of professional responsibilities, and content knowledge, and support district initiatives. (a) District administrators, teachers, and support professionals develop and sustain a common understanding of expectations for educator quality through a detailed system for educator evaluation that clearly communicates the purposes, procedures and policies for evaluation, acceptable levels of performance for individual educators and groups of educators, and the ways in which evaluation information will be collected and used. (i) The system addresses at least the following four core personnel evaluation purposes: provide feedback on performance to all educators to support continuous professional development; create incentives for highly effective educators; improve the performance of or remove ineffective educators; and organize personnel resources to support organizational efforts to meet district goals. (ii) The system communicates a vision of effective educators and supports this description with clear, measurable expectations for performance that distinguish among highly effective, effective, minimally effective, and ineffective educators. (iii) The system clearly identifies the ways in which evaluation data are used to demonstrate each of the four levels of effectiveness and the actions (e.g., professional development, retention, incentives, removal) that result from each rating. (b) Educator evaluation builds upon the professional standards appropriate to the educator’s role within the district. (i) Teacher evaluation builds upon the Rhode Island Professional Teaching Standards. (ii) Administrator evaluation builds upon the Rhode Island Standards for Educational Leadership. (iii) Support Professional evaluation builds upon the professional standards for these positions2. (iv) When an educator’s specific responsibilities are more appropriately measured by the standards for a different role category a district may elect to evaluate that educator using the more appropriate standards and evaluation instruments3. (c) Educator evaluation emphasizes the professional practice, impact on student learning, demonstration of professional responsibilities, and requisite content knowledge for all Rhode Island Educators. An 2 The Board of Regents has not adopted specific standards for Support Professionals. Districts should build on the appropriate professional standards for educators working in these roles. 3 For example a library media specialist (a teacher certificate) whose responsibilities in one district may be more comparable to running a program, similar to a support professional. In that situation support professional standards and evaluation instruments may be more applicable than teacher standards and evaluation instruments. 3 educator’s overall evaluation of effectiveness is primarily determined by evidence of impact on student growth and academic achievement. (i) Teacher evaluation includes evidence of quality of instruction, of student learning, of professional responsibilities, and of subject matter knowledge. (ii) Administrator evaluation includes evidence of quality of instructional leadership and management, of student learning, of professional responsibilities, and of the content knowledge of the field. (iii) Support Professional evaluation includes evidence of quality of program planning and delivery of service, of consultation and collaboration, of student learning, of professional responsibilities, and of the content knowledge of the area of professional specialization. (d) Educator evaluation is integrated with and supportive of district initiatives and the district’s strategic plan. The district and its schools integrate objectives that support the achievement of district initiatives, school improvement plans, and district plans into the evaluation system in ways that assure that the evaluation of district educators supports the attainment of these objectives. Standard 2: District evaluation systems emphasize the professional growth and continuous improvement of individual educators’ professional practice to enhance student performance. (a) Educator evaluation systems establish a cyclical process that includes the collection and analysis of information about an educator’s performance, the establishment of individual goals for professional development based on the analysis, and the improvement of performance as a result of that professional development. (b) Educator evaluation systems assure that all educators receive detailed feedback on their performance and recommendations for professional growth. (c) Educator evaluation systems create expectations that educators analyze their own professional practice by considering feedback from supervisors, colleagues, students, and parents/guardians, confer with supervisors about their performance and use recommendations for professional growth in developing professional development goals. (d) Educator evaluation systems collect and analyze data about individual professional development needs and identify patterns within schools and across the district to inform the development of a coherent district staff development plan. Standard 3: District evaluation systems create an organizational approach to the collective professional growth and continuous improvement of groups of educators’ (e.g., departments, teams, programs, schools) professional practice to enhance student performance. 4 (a) Evaluation systems establish a cyclical process to collect and analyze data on the collective effectiveness of groups of educators ( e.g., departments, teams, programs, schools, district) and use the data to establish common goals for professional development based on the analysis and to improve performance as a result of that professional development. (b) Educator evaluation systems collect and analyze data about collective professional development needs of groups of educators and identify patterns across departments, teams, programs, schools and the district to inform the development of a coherent district staff development plan. (c) Evaluation systems include a process to identify individual and groups of district educators who demonstrate exemplary professional practice, impact on student learning, and/or professional responsibilities and who contribute in measurable ways to district improvement. The district identifies ways to recognize and capitalize on their talents through differentiated roles and responsibilities, formal recognition, and/or other incentives. Standard 4: District evaluation systems provide quality assurance of all district educators and differentiate evaluation processes based upon level of experience, job assignment, and information from prior evaluations. (a) All district educators are evaluated at least annually; however due to the cyclical nature of the evaluation the specific procedures may vary based on educator experience, assignment, and the outcome of prior evaluations. (b) Evaluation systems differentiate procedures based on the level of an educator’s experience. (i) Educators who are new to the profession, new to the district, or who are new to a role category are provided with intensive support and evaluation in ways that assure that they meet expectations for educator quality within the district. (ii) Educators who change assignments within a role category are supported and evaluated based upon a district-developed transition plan that is designed to address the new knowledge and skills required by the change in position, professional development needs identified from prior evaluations, and contextual reasons (e.g., district need, involuntary transfer) for the move. (iii) Educators who remain in the same assignment and consistently demonstrate that they meet expectations for educator quality within the district are evaluated in ways that monitor continued quality of performance and emphasize professional growth. (c) Evaluation systems identify all educators who do not meet expectations for educator quality within the district and provide them with intensive support and evaluation specifically designed to improve their performance. 5 (i) The district identifies a team to work with each educator to develop an improvement plan with targeted support and intervention designed to help the educator meet the district’s expectations for educator quality. (ii) The improvement plan includes clearly articulated objectives, benchmarks, and timelines to improve performance to an acceptable level. (iii) The district identifies personnel actions that will result when the educator meets or fails to meet the expectations. (d) The district dismisses educators who do not meet expectations for educator quality and who are unwilling or unable to improve as a result of feedback and outcomes identified in an improvement plan in a timely manner. (e) Evaluation systems are designed to provide objective information to support meaningful renewal and tenure decisions. Standard 5: District evaluation systems assure fair, accurate, and consistent assessment of educator performance. (a) The evaluation system is transparent to all educators. The purpose, criteria, instruments, procedures, and expectations for acceptable levels of performance are clearly communicated to educators through handbooks. Districts support educators in developing a thorough understanding of the evaluation system. (b) The evaluation system demonstrates the validity of evaluation decisions by assuring a strong connection between the evaluation instruments and professional standards and educator roles and responsibilities. (c) Evaluation systems incorporate appropriate evaluation instruments, including at a minimum, observations of the educator’s practice, evidence of student learning outcomes, and demonstrations of professional responsibilities. (d) Evaluation systems seek information from students, parents and guardians, colleagues, and supervisors, to inform an educator’s evaluation and professional development. Evaluation systems use a variety of methodologies that incorporate different types of evidence to address the range of expectations identified in the appropriate professional standards and use multiple measures, to provide a thorough assessment of the educator’s performance. (e) Evaluators are selected, trained, and retained based on their ability to make valid and accurate judgments. Evaluators are selected based upon their depth of knowledge and their demonstrated expertise and are assigned based upon the subject matter knowledge, grade-level experience, and other requisite experience required to accurately use specific evaluation instruments. Evaluators are 6 trained in the implementation of the district’s evaluation instruments, demonstrate their ability to make consistent judgments, and are reviewed on a regular basis to verify they continue to make accurate judgments. (f) The evaluation system provides safeguards against possible sources of bias to ensure valid assessments. Districts review evaluation instruments for possible sources of bias in the design process and monitor implementation results for possible inappropriate adverse impact. Evaluators raise existing or potential conflicts of interest so they can be addressed. The evaluation system provides procedural safeguards (e.g., appeals) to ensure the integrity of the system. Standard 6: District evaluation systems are an integral part of the district human capital management system and are supported by district educators who regularly review and revise the system in response to systematic feedback and changing district needs. (a) Districts establish and support a District Evaluation Committee that includes teachers, support professionals, administrators, and union representatives. The committee solicits feedback from others (e.g., students, parents, assessment experts) who bring added perspective or expertise when appropriate. The Committee reviews the effectiveness of the evaluation system, the validity and utility of the data produced by the system, the fairness, accuracy, and consistency of decisions made, and the currency of the system. The Committee uses the information from the analysis to make recommendations for revisions to the system. (b) The District Evaluation Committee communicates data from the evaluation system to district personnel responsible for strategic planning and professional development to work collaboratively towards a coherent approach to educator quality, professional development and continuous organizational improvement. (c) The District Evaluation Committee works with district leadership to assure the resources of time, financial support, and evaluation expertise necessary to maintain the quality of the evaluation system. (d) The district is responsible for meeting the Rhode Island Department of Education’s reporting requirements for assuring the quality of educator evaluation.